Sainik colonies not for outsiders, only for state subjects: Mehbooba

Srinagar : Castigating the opposition for attacking her government over allotment of land for Sainik colonies here, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti on Saturday said the colonies are not for outsiders, but only for state subjects.

” Sainik colonies are not meant for outsiders, it is for state subjects. The proposal is in the process since the previous government,” she said.

“The governor has issued an order to identify land for the proposed Sanik colonies, but I want to clear that our government has still not identified land,” she informed the state assembly.

Intensifying her attack on the opposition, the Peoples Democratic Party chief said, “When the All Party Working Group has agreed on separate transit camps for Pandits, why then is the opposition opposing the proposal today.

“When we can’t accommodate Muslim migrants who are affiliated with various political parties in their native villages how can we send Kashmiri Pandits? I assure you that I will bring back Kashmiri Pandits, and they can live wherever they want to. We accommodated them in transit camps and gave all facilities,” said Mehbooba.

On the question of repealing the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (AFSPA) from the Valley, she said, “I am running the government as per my father’s (late Mufti Mohammad Sayeed) vision and it is clear that the chair is not my weakness. I am working on the agenda of the alliance and it takes time in completion. The agenda also includes removal of AFSPA, but it will take time.”

Tackling a volley of shots fired by the opposition on Friday, Mehbooba said, “It has been just one and a half months that I took over as the Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister and the opposition wants me to resolve all the issues, which is not possible in such a short span of time. We are working on the agenda of our alliance in collaboration with our alliance partner the Bharatiya Janata party. Our government will resolve all the long-standing issues step by step.”

On the opening of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in the state, she said, “We have received the orders for two AIIMs, which will be established in both Srinagar and Jammu regions. In Srinagar, it will be established in Awantipora, while in Jammu AIIMS it will be established in Samba.”

Besides, she said her government has also received orders for smart cities for both Srinagar and Jammu.

“We are going to set up women police stations in all districts of the state for the safety of women,” she added.

However, the House witnessed uproar again on Saturday as Congress and National Conference MLAs staged a walked out, protesting against inadequate rehabilitation of the 2014 flood victims.

Opposition MLAs alleged that the ruling PDP-BJP government has failed in providing relief to the families affected by the devastating floodS.

More than 200 people were killed and almost a million were displaced for weeks in the September 2014 floods in the Valley.

The House witnessed a ruckus on Friday over the Handwara incident, where five civilians were killed allegedly by security forces.

Independent legislator Engineer Rashid staged a protest in the assembly over the delay in the magisterial probe into the Handwara killings, and sought an explanation from the state government as to why it was retracting from its promise of completing the inquiry within a month. (ANI)